The present invention relates generally to a cleaning device, and more particularly to a cleaning device for cleaning out residual ink. The cleaning device has simplified structure and is able to directly move in response to an ink cartridge carrier to wipe off residual ink remaining on an inkjet printhead.
A conventional inkjet printer includes an ink cartridge with an inkjet printhead. The ink cartridge is disposed on an ink cartridge carrier and positioned above a paper-feeding path by a set height. The printhead is reciprocally movable in a direction normal to the paper-feeding path, whereby the printhead is able to jet ink onto a paper and print the paper with figures or characters.
In general, the printhead includes multiple jet nozzles for jetting ink onto the paper. In the inkjet operation, some ink drops often remain around the jet nozzles and eventually become solid depositions. The solid depositions will partially clog the jet nozzles to change the jet direction. This will affect the printing quality.
Various types of cleaning devices have been developed for solving the problem of residual ink remaining around the jet nozzles. These cleaning devices employ rotationally drivable brush hairs or wipers, which once or twice back and forth pass through a lower side of the jet nozzles to wipe off the residual ink remaining thereon. For example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,168,257 B1 and 5,440,331 disclose typical cleaning devices employing wipers for cleaning out the residual ink. The cleaning device generally includes a bed with different rails at different heights. A slide mount equipped with wiper units is movable along the rails, whereby the wiper units can wipe off the residual ink remaining on the jet nozzle of the printhead.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,637,856 B2 discloses a cleaning device including a rotatable cleaning roller arranged at a lower end of the jet nozzle for wiping off ink drops or solid ink remaining around the jet nozzle.
In another type of conventional cleaning device, several frames and slide mounts are arranged in the printhead maintenance station of an office machine. The frames and slide mounts are movable in different directions to make the wiper unit move in a set direction for wiping off the residual ink remaining on the printhead. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 7,311,390 B2 discloses a typical cleaning device including a frame and a slide mount disposed on the frame. A first base seat and a second base seat are arranged on the slide mount. The second base seat is equipped with a wiper set and a fixing seat. A first rail is longitudinally disposed on the slide mount, whereby the first and second base seats are freely movable within and along the first rail. A second rail, an oblique third rail and a fourth rail are disposed on the frame. The third rail and the first rail contain an angle. When an ink cartridge carrier moves toward the frame into contact with the fixing seat, the first and second base seats are pushed to move along the first rail of the slide mount and the second rail of the frame.
According to the above arrangement, the conventional cleaning device requires that:    1. The slide mount is movable along the third and fourth rails of the frame.    2. The wiper set, the fixing seat and the first and second base seats are simultaneously movable along the first rail of the slide mount and the second rail of the frame, whereby the wiper unit can wipe off the residual ink remaining on the inkjet printhead.
Such conventional cleaning device has some defects, which need to be improved. For example, such conventional cleaning device has complicated structure, operation pattern and connection relationship. As aforesaid, the first, second, third and fourth rails must cooperate with each other in operation. Moreover, the frame, the slide mount, the fixing seat and the first and second base seats must be adapted to each other to move the wiper set in the set direction to the inkjet printhead for wiping off the residual ink. Furthermore, it is troublesome to assemble these components.
It is therefore tried by the applicant to provide a cleaning device, which is able to directly move in response to an ink cartridge carrier to wipe off residual ink remaining on an inkjet printhead without any additional transmission mechanism (such as motor). Accordingly, the components of the cleaning device can be more easily assembled.